Friday, July 16, 2010

USAID Officials Offer Glimpse into US MDG Strategy

The Obama administration’s Millennium Development Goals strategy will be guided by “four imperatives”: innovation, sustainability, tracking outcomes, and accountability, two representatives of the U.S. Agency for International Development say.

USAID’s Thomas Beck and Leonardo Martinez-Diaz have been close to the creation of this strategy, which was announced by U.S. President Barack Obama last year.

Innovation, which acts as a “force multiplier,” should be leveraged for MDGs that are harder to achieve, Beck said during a July 14 panel discussion on the MDGs at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Meanwhile, promoting broad-based economic growth, good governance, women’s empowerment, sustainable delivery of basic services and mitigation of shocks such as conflict or natural disasters will help to incorporate sustainability in the U.S.’s MDG strategy, Beck said.

The strategy also rests on monitoring development outcomes. USAID, Martinez-Diaz said, is seeking to improve the evaluation of its programs, as well as enhance the collection of data and examination of results.

In enhancing mutual accountability, the U.S. seeks to increase both the transparency in its aid pledges and of aid flows in beneficiary nations. Martinez-Diaz said USAID is planning a few pilot projects that will test methods to help ensure that resources are managed responsibly.

In enhancing mutual accountability, the U.S. seeks to increase both the transparency in its aid pledges and of aid flows in beneficiary nations. Martinez-Diaz said USAID is planning a few pilot projects that will test methods to help ensure that resources are managed responsible.

The strategy also rests on monitoring development outcomes. USAID, Martinez-Diaz said, is seeking to improve the evaluation of its programs, as well as enhance the collection of data and examination of results.

USAID officials said the strategy will be unveiled “soon,” UN Dispatch reports.